What happens when one’s ability no longer decides one’s position in the social hierarchy? What happens when our Constitution, which de jure professes to be secular, fails to live up to it at the de facto level? The history of the largest democracy in the world is one of discrimination and exclusion. The author attributes this collapse to the deeply embedded Varna and Jati system that is further perpetuated by the ones in power. Besides offering a compelling study of the origin of social discrimination, the author exposes the anatomy of contemporary communal politics. Some of the bold questions raised by him relate to the disproportionate historical and political prominence accorded to Gandhi and Nehru at the expense of other deserving figures like Ambedkar and Jinnah. Among the topics covered in this book are: • Communal politics and the Varna-Jati system • The extension of Varna-Jati to non-Hindus • Politics under colonial rule • Politics during the Freedom Struggle • Ambedkar and the Varna-Jati system • Jinnah and the extension of Varna-Jati to non-Hindus • Indian politics since independence • Reverse discrimination